Latin cardinal eschews pomp

By John Otis, Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle South America Bureau

Updated 9:21 pm, Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Photo: Natacha Pisarenko, Associated Press

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This Aug. 7, 2009 file photo shows Argentina's Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio, right, giving a mass outside San Cayetano church in Buenos Aires. Bergoglio, who took the name of Pope Francis, was elected on Wednesday, March 13, 2013 the 266th pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church.

BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA -- When Roman Catholic Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio takes the subway to work, few of his fellow commuters realize they are sharing the train with the archbishop of Buenos Aires.

The 68-year-old Jesuit eschews opulent religious garments, chauffeur-driven limousines and other perks of his position. Sometimes, he throws an old raincoat over his cassock before heading out the door.

"He never dresses like a cardinal," said Gregory James Venables, a close friend of Bergoglio's who heads the Anglican Church in southern South America. "It's not to be scruffy. But that's his character. He is very, very, very humble."

Bergoglio has made his mark both in Argentina and Rome.

When the College of Cardinals gathers next week to elect a new pontiff to replace Pope John Paul II, many Vatican watchers predict that Bergoglio will be on the short list of the so-called "papabiles."

If the cardinals bypass the Italian contenders and look to Latin America, home to about 40 percent of the world's 1 billion Roman Catholics, "the new man would be ... most likely Jorge Mario Bergoglio," columnist Sandro Magister conjectured recently in the Italian weekly L'Espresso.

In 2001 and 2002, Bergoglio provided a moral compass as Argentina weathered its worst financial crisis.

In his homilies, Bergoglio lectured the country's politicians about the evils of corruption, which played a major role in the economic free fall. He mediated talks among politicians, union leaders and citizens groups, helping to keep a lid on violent street protests.

"We were at risk of disintegrating as a country," said the Rev. Diego Burbridge, a parish priest in Buenos Aires. "Bergoglio played an important role as a pacifier."

Carlos Facal, vice president of Citizen's Power, which monitors corruption, called Bergoglio's low-key style effective. "He doesn't talk much, so when he does, his words have great impact," Facal said.

Archbishop dislikes travel

Still, critics of Bergoglio say that electing him as pope could be a mistake.

Unlike John Paul, Bergoglio is said to dislike travel and to shy away from the press. Since becoming cardinal, he has given just three interviews.

Bergoglio lost a lung because of a respiratory illness when he was in his 20s. Some parishioners say they must strain to hear his voice and complain that he lacks charisma.

"It would be hard for him to handle the job" of pope, said Elvira Diez, a Catholic who knows Bergoglio and comes from the Buenos Aires neighborhood where he grew up.

Some ordinary Catholics who would like to see more liberal church policies complain that Bergoglio has taken a hard line against abortion, ordaining women and the use of condoms.

Although 92 percent of Argentines are Catholics, only a small fraction go to Mass regularly. Some have been drawn to evangelical Protestant churches that, they say, seem more in tune with everyday concerns.

"Due to these traditional positions, the Catholic Church is losing a lot of people," said high school teacher Patricia Silva after praying at a church where Bergoglio used to preach.

The son of Italian immigrants, Bergoglio initially studied chemical engineering in college but decided to opt for the priesthood. He was ordained in 1969 and, soon afterward, took over as head of the Jesuit order in Argentina.

Military dictatorship

By then, the country was in the grip of a military dictatorship that carried out a "dirty war" in which 10,000 to 30,000 Argentines were killed or disappeared. The Catholic Church was widely condemned for supporting the regime, which ruled from 1976 to 1983. At the time, his critics say, Bergoglio failed to raise his voice against the military abuses.

"He has never been known as a strong proponent of human rights," said Graciela Dubrez, a longtime rights activist.

After Bergoglio was appointed archbishop of Buenos Aires in 1998, he tried to make amends.

When the pope apologized for church abuses through the centuries, Bergoglio insisted that Catholic officials in Argentina wear garments symbolizing penance for sins committed by clergy during the dictatorship.

Like John Paul, Bergoglio has come out as a strong advocate for the poor and has criticized the excesses of free-market capitalism.

All along, Bergoglio has maintained his austere lifestyle, forgoing a luxurious archbishop's mansion for a small apartment, cooking his meals and taking public transportation.

"When we sit on the subway together," said Venables, the Anglican church leader, "we're just two guys."